kerry med with sergey lavrov. afterwards, he spoke of hope for de-escalation of tension. >> russia made a choice. and we have clearly stated that we believe it is the wrong choice, that is the choice to move troops into crimea. russia can now choose to de-escalate this situation. and we are committed to working with russia. and together with our friends and allies in an effort to provide a way for this entire situation to find the road to de-escalation. the united states is ready to work with all parties to make that happen and to make it happen as soon as possible. >> russian president vladimir putin has also spoken to angela merkel today. if diplomacy fails, the u.s. and its allies could put in sanctions against russia in a matter of days. howard fineman and michael mcfall. he's now a fellow at the hoover institution and an msnbc analyst. mr. ambassador, it's great to the united states is ready to work with all parties to make that happen and to make it happen as soon as possible. >> russian president vladimir p